Miami Dolphins: Passing The Depth Test

November 23, 2009|Posted by Ethan J. Skolnick on November 23, 2009 07:48 PM

During training camp, I posted a poll on this blog, asking readers to identify the most irreplaceable Dolphin.

The five top finishers in that poll?

Chad Pennington.

Jake Long.

Jason Ferguson.

Will Allen.

Ronnie Brown.

What does that mean?

First, that Jake better be careful. He's the only guy left.

Second, the 5-5 record, in spite of the injuries, speaks to the way the new regime has been rebuilding this program.

The work isn't done yet, especially in terms of offensive playmakers. But you should be able to see something developing here. It's the New England model, in which the extra guys on the roster need to be able to perform "a lot of jobs," as Tony Sparano likes to see.

For all the talk about Tom Brady and Tedy Bruschi and the other Patriot stars, I always viewed role guys like Troy Brown, Kevin Faulk and Mike Vrabel as the embodiments of the Patriots way. You were bound to see Bill Belichick and his staff use versatile players like that just about anywhere to plug a hole. Even the stars, like Vince Wilfork, have learned that they might be thrown out there at an unfamiliar position (like end, against the Dolphins earlier this month).

We're starting to see that here. Take Nate Garner, for instance. He played three spots on the offensive line Thursday. And, if Patrick Cobbs had stayed healthy, you would be seeing a lot of him now, in the Kevin Faulk role.

It also appears that the Dolphins, without knowing all the injuries that awaited them, picked the right roster at the end of training camp. Lex Hilliard is certainly coming in handy now. That's why I am always in favor of taking the more talented player to fill final spots, because you never know which players will get hurt and create openings during the season, even at positions where there initially appeared to be good depth.

Does Tony Sparano look back fondly at those final September decisions now? ?Yes I think so. You can say ?well maybe we should have kept this guy, we could have kept this guy? but I think we kept the right people. Looking back right now the flexibility that we have given ourselves, we talk about the right 53 people all the time and I think we kept the right 53 people. We have this outside linebacker surplus rotation that we have moving around out there. Then the secondary guys, players like Nate Jones back there and [Tyrone] Culver who can do a lot of jobs for you in the secondary. Jason Allen who can do some jobs for you in the secondary and then the Lex Hilliards' and even some of these tight ends are guys that can do a little bit more.?